Amalgamating means



c. c. HAM|L l AMALGAMATING MEANS Filed July 12, 1924 Patented Jan. 5,1926.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES C. HAMILL, OF BANDSBURG, CALIFORNIA.

AMALGAMATING MEANS.

Application filed July 12, 1924.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, CHARLES C. HAMILL, a citizen of rthe United States,residing at Randsburg, in the county of Kern, State of California, haveinvented a new and useful Amalgamating Means, of which the following isa specification.

My present invention is an amalgamation plate and a process of preparingand using the same in the recovery of precious metals; and it is anespecial object of this invention to provide for use an improvedamalgamation plate presenting a comparatively rough surface, suitable tothe retention of fine particles of a precious metal passing thereover insuspension.

Extensive losses have heretofore resulted from the use of comparativelysmooth amalgamation plates, whose surfaces afford no adequate lodgementfor the retention of fine particles, such particles having beenpermitted to float` off and to be lost with the gangue; and it isaccordingly an object of this invention to provide the surface of anamalgamation plate with an uneven surface, such as may be formed by theassociation of suitable solid particles or undissolved residues ofparticles of a metal such as silver, with sufficient quick to form awaxy but rough coating on a base plate.

l The mentioned base plate may be-of copper, or the like; and in apreferred embodiment of my invention, I may prepare a mixture of, forexample, silver filings and mercury of a consistency4 suitable forapplication by a brush; and I may spread the resultant amalgam mixtureon the mentioned base plate duly silver coated, to a thickness such asto provide minute pockets or depressions between the undissolvedresidues of silver particles, in which pockets even minute particles ofgold may find lodgernent for a period sufficient to permit theiramalgamation; and the mentioned amalgamation of gold particles, theseparticles being of various sizes, may permitsubsequent application ofmercury in such manner as to build up a plate covered by the mentionedamalgam mixture and particles ofprecious metals to any desiredthickness. The resultant mixture may finally be separated from the baseplate and the constituent metals may be separated and completelyrecovered, in any usual or preferred manner, as by retorting.

Serial No. 725,721.

poses of illustration, a base plate 1l, of cop-y per or other suitablematerial, this plate being of any preferred size such as five by tenfeet, is adapted to be used on an agitating table (not shown) of anyusual or preferred design, and said plate may be coated with an amalgammixture, of somewhat waxy consistency, comprised of quicksilver andsubdivided solid materials, such as residues of silver filings, capableof partial amalgamation therewith. This amalgam mixture may be preparedeither by initially coating the silvered plate 11 with amalgamandsprinkling silver filings, or the like thereon, or by stirring, as in amixing bowl, a suitable quantity of such filings, or their equivalent,into mercury in such quantity as to produce the desired waxyconsistency, while leaving the mentioned filings, or their equivalent,largely undissolved and in suspension therein. In either of the casesreferred to, the amalgam mixture may be spread in a comparatively thinlayer, and preferably by means of a brush or broom, over the entiresurface of the plate 11, or over any desired part thereof, in suchmanner as to produce a roughened surface by the projection of theseparate undissolved residues 12 of individual filings, coated withamalgam, above the average level produced by the application of saidmixture, the interstices being thus adapted to permit a lodgement ofparticles of gold, or the like, for a period sufficient to assure theamalgamation thereof. The plate 11 amalgamated as described may bemounted upon a ytable (not shown) at any suitable inclination andagitated in any preferred way, and a suitably subdivided ore, or a blacksand, or ,the like, may be fed thereto over the edge of a distributingboard, or the like, in any usual or preferred manner. The deposit may bebuilt up to any desired depth, as by the occasional adding of suitablequantities of quicksilver; and the entire resultant Coating` mixture mayinally be separated and its3 constituents may ybe recovered.k refined inany usual or preferred mannerfas by retorting. i

Althouglrl haveherein deseribeda single complete embodiment of myinvention, it will be understood that Various 'features thereof might beindependently employed and also that various modifications might be madeby those skilled in the art, Withoutvthe slightest departure from thespiritand scope Giannutris se.V rrAi/rrLL,

